


An Open Cage

by shetookyourbreathaway



Category: Criminal Minds (US TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Tattoo Parlor, Emily discovers she has a praise kink, F/F, JJ is a tattoo artist, butch JJ
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-11-30
Updated: 2020-11-30
Packaged: 2021-03-09 18:33:41
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,261
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27800815
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/shetookyourbreathaway/pseuds/shetookyourbreathaway
Summary: The needle moved over Emily’s rib and it felt like a red hot poker had been swiped across the skin. She sucked in a pained breath between her teeth, clenching her stomach muscles to prevent herself from moving, and then forced herself to slowly exhale through pursed lips. She refused to move and mess this tattoo up.The wince of pain had not gone unnoticed by JJ,“Good girl,” she crooned comfortingly as she continued to move the tattoo needle over Emily’s skin.
Relationships: Jennifer "JJ" Jareau/Emily Prentiss
Comments: 6
Kudos: 139





	An Open Cage

**Author's Note:**

> Inspired by the tumblr post that reads:  
> "During my first tattoo, my artist was a very pretty lady w many tattoos and I winced and then exhaled slowly when she was going over one of my ribs and she said "good girl." My entire body just fucking froze and I stopped breathing... #what a way to discover you have a praise kink" 
> 
> Fair warning, this is pretty much just smut, no real plot to be found.

Ambassador Elizabeth Prentiss did not approve of tattoos. She thought they were trashy, she thought that they were stupid, and  _ if I, your mother, created your body, then it’s incredibly disappointing to think that you would deface it like that, Emily, tattoos are forever _ . But Emily Prentiss thought no one, not even her overbearing mother, had the right to tell her that her body couldn’t be a work of art. 

She had tried to give herself a stick-and-poke at boarding school, with India ink and a sewing needle dipped in vodka, but something about it hadn’t worked --maybe she hadn’t pushed deep enough, or maybe it hadn’t healed properly-- so the little circle she had tried to tattoo on the inside of her wrist had faded before she even went home for the summer. In retrospect, Emily decided she was probably very lucky that had been the case, as she couldn’t even begin to imagine what her mother’s reaction would have been. Deviance from the polished political norm was not tolerated in Ambassador Prentiss’s household. 

It was only after Emily left for college that she began to reclaim herself, piece by joyful piece. For the first time in her life, she could be openly gay; she could finally learn how to cook for herself, and sometimes fuck up and have to order pizza for dinner; she could get a cat; and now, finally, after years of waiting, Emily could get a tattoo. 

Late one November evening of her sophomore year, Emily stepped into a local tattoo parlor, the bell on the door signaling her entrance. The place was small, but well-lit, and the walls were covered in beautifully drawn black and white flash sheets, as well as shelves and shelves of plants. There were 4 black leather tattoo tables, but given the late hour, the entire parlor was empty, with only the quiet sounds of Fleetwood Mac filtering through the air. But what really drew Emily’s attention was the girl sitting behind the front counter sketching idly on a piece of paper. She had long blonde hair pulled up in a messy bun, exposing an undercut at the nape of her neck, and she was wearing a loose-cut black tank top over a black sports bra, revealing her toned shoulders and defined biceps, which were almost completely covered in well-coordinated black and white tattoos. 

At the chiming of the doorbell, the girl looked up from the counter, revealing her shockingly blue eyes and sharp jawline. “Can I help you?” she asked.

“Uhh,” Emily stumbled over her words, stunned into temporary incoherence by the pretty girl in front of her, “I’m here for a tattoo?” She immediately wanted to smack herself.  _ Of course you’re here for a tattoo, dumbass, this is a tattoo shop. Way to make a fool of yourself _ . 

“Oh?” The blonde smirked at her, raising an eyebrow. “Well, I was going to close in the next hour, so you won’t have time for a big piece… What were you thinking of?”

“Something pretty small,” Emily assured her. “I want a birdcage with an open door on my ribcage. Maybe about the size of the palm of your hand?”

“Any idea what kind of bird?” JJ asked, looking interested.

“I was thinking… maybe a blackbird?” Emily gave a little shrug. “You know, like the Beatles song?” 

“No way!” JJ exclaimed, moving to stand up. “I have a whole blackbird _piece_ right here!” She pulled up one side of her tank top, revealing a blue boxer band that poked out over the top of her low-slung ripped jeans and a set of toned abs. _Oh… yeah, and_ _a beautifully-done tattoo of three blackbirds flying around each other that stretched from her hip bone to the underside of her breasts._

“Wow,” Emily managed, trying to concentrate on the tattoo, her mouth going dry. “Yeah, I was just thinking something to symbolize freedom,  _ finally _ , and coming out… coming out of your cage and your own limits, I mean.”

“Anyways,” JJ said, dropping her tank top, “I love that idea. Give me, like, 15 minutes to sketch something up for you; you can wait right over there.” she gestured at a red velvet loveseat tucked into the front corner of the studio.

“Thank you,” Emily replied, trying to sound as thankful as she was feeling. “I really appreciate it.”

“And because you’re so cute,” JJ added with a wink, “I’ll even stay late to make sure it gets done tonight.”

All Emily could manage was a nod, a blush heating her cheeks as she moved to sit down. 

The sketching had gone incredibly fast, JJ sliding into the loveseat next to Emily less than 10 minutes later with a proud smile and a beautiful little sketch of an open cage with a silhouette of a blackbird flying out of it. Emily had been quick to give JJ’s sketch an enthusiastic and appreciative approval, and the blonde had hurried off to make the transfer for the actual tattoo. With all that done, JJ got Emily situated lying on her side on the black leather tattooing bench in the far back of the studio, and got right to work.

The needle moved over Emily’s rib and it felt like a red hot poker had been swiped across the skin. She sucked in a pained breath between her teeth, clenching her stomach muscles to prevent herself from moving, and then forced herself to slowly exhale through pursed lips. She refused to move and mess this tattoo up.

The wince of pain had not gone unnoticed by JJ,

“Good girl,” she crooned comfortingly as she continued to move the tattoo needle over Emily’s skin.

Emily froze, all of the air feeling like it had vanished from her lungs.  _ What was it about that phrase that felt so wrong given their current context, but felt so good?  _ She felt her cheeks flush, and an unexpected rush of heat dampen her panties. She tried to focus on slow, deep exhales as JJ continued to move the stinging needle slowly over her skin.

“You know,” JJ mused casually, “I could tattoo you all day. You lie so perfectly still.”

“You should see me in bed,” Emily quipped, not really thinking her response through, her mind elsewhere. At this, a smile curled JJ’s lips prettily, a quiet, approving hunger in her eyes.

“Does it hurt?” she asked.

“A little,” Emily admitted, still trying to look tough.

“You’re sitting so well for me for your first time, pretty girl,” JJ responded, her sweet tone bordering on teasing. Spellbound, Emily couldn’t even find the air to respond.

A silence fell in the studio, the only sound the buzzing of the tattoo gun, tension thick in the air. Emily kept sneaking glances at the beautiful tattoo artist, who was completely focused on the pale skin of her ribs. She was so wrapped up in the furrow of concentration between JJ’s eyebrows, the occasional poke of her tongue out of her mouth in focus that she barely felt the continued sting of the needle. 

“All done,” JJ eventually announced, wiping the tattoo off, and handing Emily a small mirror. “What do you think?”

“Wow,” Emily breathed, taking in the meticulously shaded, intricate little cage that was now forever etched into her skin. The door of the cage was open, and a tiny, delicate little bird was shaded into the skin just under her breast. “It looks amazing.”

“You were such a good girl for me,” JJ praised her as she stripped her gloves off and tossed them casually in a nearby trash can. The phrase hit Emily just as hard as the first time, and she found herself sitting up and setting the mirror aside, her whole body tingling with..  _ what? Adrenaline? Attraction?... Arousal? _ She almost couldn’t decide.

“Just hold still for me now while I tape it up,” JJ told her, and moved in close to press a bandage to the fresh tattoo. When she straightened up, Emily found herself eye-to-piercing-blue-eye with the tattoo artist. Acting on nothing but instinct, she leaned forward, pressing her lips to JJ’s. The blonde responded quickly, kissing Emily hungrily, opening up her mouth to swipe her tongue against the brunette’s. 

JJ planted her hands on the table on either side of Emily, leaning into her and kissing her hard, tongue tracing teasingly against hers before capturing Emily’s bottom lip between her teeth and tugging on it hard.

A whimper escaped Emily’s mouth as she pushed her body closer to JJ’s, enjoying the feeling of her soft curves pressing up against the planes of blonde’s muscles. 

“So,” JJ whispered softly against Emily’s mouth, “ _ can _ you be a good girl for me?” 

All Emily could do was nod, her fingers moving through the peach fuzz at the nape of JJ’s neck to tangle in her hair. She kissed JJ desperately, drinking down the taste of her mouth while JJ’s hand moved down her front to cup Emily’s hot sex through her jeans. Even that little bit of friction felt  _ amazing _ and Emily found herself grinding against JJ’s hand, panting into her mouth between kisses. 

JJ shoved Emily back onto the leather tattooing bench and roughly pulled her tank top over her head before moving to straddle the brunette. Emily reached up to run her fingers reverently over JJ’s newly-revealed abs, but JJ grabbed both of her wrists, shoving them into the table above Emily’s head. 

“So here’s how this is going to go,” JJ started, one hand effortlessly holding Emily’s wrists above her head, while the other grabbed the brunette’s chin, forcing her to meet JJ’s eyes, “you’re going to show me just  _ how _ good you can be for me, and then I  _ might _ let you come... is that okay?” Emily nodded eagerly. “I need to hear it from you, pretty girl. Do you want that?”

“Yes,” Emily gasped, “ _ please _ , fuck me.”

“Good,” JJ nodded approvingly, moving to pull Emily’s jeans off, leaving her in just her lacy black bra and burgundy cotton thong, on which a patch of wetness was already visible. 

“Awww baby girl,” JJ crooned, running one teasing finger over Emily’s panties, “is this all for me?” Emily’s hips jerked in response, a gasp leaving her mouth,

“Yes,  _ god _ , please, touch me,” she pleaded. 

JJ stood, pulling off her baggy jeans and boxers, leaving her just in her black sports bra, and then climbed back onto the table, placing her knees on either side of Emily’s face. 

Emily reached up to grab her breasts, and JJ swatted her hands away, tsk-ing gently,

“No touching, baby. Keep your hands by your sides and use your mouth, okay? That’s a good girl.” And with that, JJ lowered her hips to Emily’s face. 

Emily pressed a chaste kiss to JJ’s clit before flicking her tongue against it, earning a low groan from the woman above her, as well as a jolt of her hips forward. Taking the encouragement, Emily traced her tongue around JJ’s folds, circling it once, twice, three times around her clit before tensing her tongue and pushing it slowly inside JJ. 

JJ hummed low in her throat, and ground her hips down into Emily’s face, pressing her clit against Emily’s face, effectively cutting off most of her air supply. Emily felt like she was drowning in JJ, all of her senses consumed by the scent and sound of the blonde girl above her; and she  _ loved _ it. She could feel her panties grow even wetter as she lapped eagerly at JJ, paying close attention to which motions drew quiet moans and gasps from the blonde above her. When Emily curled her tongue forward, caressing JJ’s inner walls, the blonde let out a low moan,

“That’s it. Right there,  _ good girl _ .”

Emily could almost scream at the words of affirmation, redoubling her efforts, nodding her face against JJ, pushing her tongue against the beauty riding her face as hard as she could. 

“Okay,” JJ gasped, pulling away from Emily’s face. “ _ Fuck _ I’m close.” She tried to catch her breath. “Just put your mouth on my clit, baby, okay?” Emily complied, sucking on her clit, and immediately drawing a harsh breath from JJ. “ _ Oh _ , good girl, right there.” 

JJ’s hips bucked against Emily’s face hard as her breathing picked up. 

“Oh  _ fuck _ ,” JJ gasped, grinding down on Emily’s mouth. “Right  _ there, _ pretty girl, that feels  _ so good _ . Keep doing that… You’re doing so well, oh god, oh--” JJ trailed off, a long, loud, low moan cutting of her voice, her hips jerking helplessly against Emily’s face as she came. Emily kept lapping at JJ, riding out her orgasm with her, the blonde’s noises and the uncontrolled movements of her hips only turning Emily on more. 

“Enough,” JJ eventually panted, using her hand to push Emily’s face away, and moving down her body to lay on top of Emily while she caught her breath. With their bodies pressed so close together, Emily could feel the light sheen of sweat on JJ’s skin, the pounding of their hearts almost in sync. Eventually, when her breathing had calmed a bit, JJ lifted her head, taking in Emily’s flushed cheeks and the slight squirming of her hips.

“You did such a good job, baby,” JJ told her, gently stroking her face, while sneaking a thigh in between Emily’s legs. Emily tried to grind down on JJ’s firm, muscular thigh, and she immediately pulled it away, 

“Ah, ah, ah…” JJ chastised her. “You get to come when I tell you, not before, understood?”

Emily nodded. “Yeah,” she agreed breathlessly, “I’ll be good…  _ Please _ touch me?” she begged, trying to wiggle her hips against JJ. 

“Okay, baby,” JJ agreed, sitting up straight, resting on Emily's stomach and taking one hand to rub lightly, teasingly against Emily’s panties. “Here’s what I’m going to do. I’m going to put my mouth on you, and you’re going to stay  _ absolutely still _ , and you won’t come until I tell you, alright?” 

“Oh  _ fuck _ ,” Emily gasped. “Yeah,  _ please _ , just… put your mouth on me.  _ Please. _ ”

With Emily’s confirmation, JJ clambered down the bench, pulling off Emily’s soaked thong and positioning herself between Emily’s thighs, grasping them hard and pulling them apart. With the first touch of JJ’s tongue, Emily gasped, her hips jumping up off the table against JJ’s mouth.

“ _ No _ ,” JJ commanded, withdrawing her face from between Emily’s legs, and landing a light slap on her upper thigh. “You  _ will _ not move. Be good and hold still for me. Okay, baby? Just like you did for my tattoo.” 

“Oh  _ god _ ,” Emily panted, trying her best to calm her breathing a little bit. “I’ll be good, I  _ promise _ .” 

“All right then,” JJ said, sounding doubtful, and lowered her head between Emily’s thighs again. This time, Emily was ready, tensing all of her muscles to prevent herself from moving. When JJ’s tongue moved to lap lightly against Emily’s clit, she let out a gasp and, a quiet squeak, but managed to remain completely still.

“There you go,” JJ crooned, “just like that, being such a good girl for me.” Delicately, JJ pushed two fingers inside Emily, sucking gently on her clit. It felt so good, but all Emily could do was clench all of her muscles and let out a low moan, She could already feel the coil of her impending orgasm tightening deep in her core, but she willed herself to hold back. 

JJ alternated between sucking on Emily’s clit and flicking her tongue against it, pumping her fingers slowly and purposefully in and out of her, murmuring words of encouragement against her.

“Such a good girl for me,” JJ breathed against Emily. “You’re close, aren’t you? I can feel it around my fingers,”

“Yeah,” Emily panted, most of her concentration going towards staying still. “Oh.  _ Please _ ,” she sobbed as JJ sucked particularly hard on her clit. “I can’t hold on for very much longer.” 

“You’re being so good for me,” JJ praised as she continued to pump her fingers mercilessly in and out of Emily. “I wonder, should you be rewarded?”

“ _ Yes, _ ” Emily begged, “please. I want to be good for you.”

“Alright,” JJ relented, curling her fingers forward to caress the small, rough patch inside Emily’s front walls. “You can let go, baby. Go on. Come for me.” She lowered her mouth back to Emily, sucking hard on her clit while flicking her tongue around it.

Emily’s world went white with pleasure for a second, her hips rising off the bench and a low, sobbing scream ripping through the back of her throat as she arched up off the tattoo table, coming harder than she ever had before. Her body was wracked with tremors as her hips jerked helplessly against JJ’s talented mouth. JJ nursed her slowly through the powerful orgasm, but even as Emily slumped, boneless against the black leather table, her mouth and tongue kept moving against her. 

“ _ Please _ ,” Emily begged, as soon as she could form words. “It’s too good. I’m not sure…”

“You can come again for me, baby,” JJ encouraged, as she continued to lick at Emily’s folds. She withdrew her fingers, making eye contact with Emily as she sucked them clean. “Mmm… you taste so good, baby. You know that?” Emily groaned at the visual, an aftershock wracking her body. “I can’t get enough of you,” JJ growled, lowering her face back down between Emily’s legs. “So, you’re going to be a good girl, and come for me again, okay?”

All Emily could do was gasp as JJ’s mouth once again made contact with her sensitive clit, toying with it lightly, clearly delighted with how it caused Emily’s hips to jump and jerk helplessly against her. JJ settled back into a regular rhythm, pushing Emily ever-closer to a second orgasm as Emily all but sobbed above her, overtaken pleasure tinged with a touch of pain. It felt so good,  _ hurt so exquisitely _ , and Emily wasn’t sure how long she could keep up with JJ’s consistent but punishing rhythm. 

“Hmmm...” JJ hummed against her. “Hurts a little bit, doesn’t it? But it hurts so good, right?” Emily nodded in agreement, and JJ continued licking teasingly against Emily’s clit. “Come on, baby. Be a good girl and come again for me.” 

JJ redoubled her efforts, sucking punishingly on Emily’s clit and pushing her fingers hard inside of her, twisting and pushing against her unerringly. 

“Oh god, oh  _ god _ , please,” Emily sobbed, her whole body shaking, not at all sure what she was begging for anymore.

“There you go,” JJ murmured against her. “Be a good girl and come for me again. Come on now.”

At her words, Emily’s whole body seized tight, wracked with waves of pleasure so intense that it hurt a bit. Her back arched off the table, and she pushed herself helplessly against JJ as her mouth opened in a silent scream. She wasn’t sure she had ever felt something so punishingly wonderful.

“Oh god, oh  _ god _ , oh  _ fuck _ ,” she panted as the high began to recede, slumping helplessly back against the tattooing table as she shook with aftershocks. 

Eventually JJ tore her mouth away, kissing Emily’s inner thigh before kissing a gentle path up Emily’s torso and nestling against her on the cool black leather of the table. 

“You were such a good girl for me,” she told her softly as she gently pushed Emily’s sweaty hair away from her forehead, pulling Emily’s flushed body tight against her, nuzzling her face into Emily’s shoulder. “Just like I knew you would be.”


End file.
